A vehicle door may consist of an outer panel facing the exterior of the vehicle and an inner panel facing the cabin of the vehicle. The inner panel includes a lower wall that faces a rocker assembly. In a side impact collision, vehicle doors may collapse inwardly and intrude into the cabin of the vehicle. Excessive door intrusion may adversely affect deployment of a side air bag due to the reduced gap between the door and the occupant.
Some safety structures may attempt to minimize the door intrusion into the cabin from a side impact collision. Such a structure is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,462,633. U.S. Pat. No. 4,462,633 discloses a box shaped reinforcing member mounted on a vehicle floor that extends above the side sill or rocker panel. A bracket mounted to the door has a portion engaging the reinforcing member when the door is closed. In a side impact collision, the bracket engages the reinforcing member to inhibit inward movement of the door. The box shaped reinforcing member is visible to an occupant, especially when the door is open. An occupant must step over the rocker panel when entering or exiting the vehicle. A box shaped reinforcing member that is disposed above the rocker panel interferes with the ingress and egress of the occupant. Placing a box shaped reinforcing member above the rocker panel also limits design freedom. The receiver must be of a limited size to reduce interference with the ingress and egress of the occupant.
The above problems and other problems are addressed by this disclosure as summarized below.